Octopus Delays Fixing Smart Meter

QrizB

From the number of radio teleswitch threads we're getting on the forum right now (almost one a day?) it looks like the message is finally getting through to folk with obsolescent metering systems. I wonder if Octopus and the other suppliers are being saturated by meter replacement requests from RTS customers, causing routine meter work like this thread to be delayed?

matelodave

Perhaps there are a lot of people who have been anti-smart meter and have been putting it off in the expectation of the RTS switch-off either being postponed or even cancelled and who are now realising that they need to get it done and are panicking.

Especially if the consequences are uncertain, possibly ending up with no heating or hot water if the meter cant switch and off peak circuits get disabled.
Or having to pay peak prices for all heating and hot water if there's a default mode and they end up on a single rate tariff.

Qyburn

Well they were supposed to turn up today, but I got a call canning the visit. Apparently due to the engineer running behind. Based on what the last guy said they must be letting people down for that reason all the time.  He told me he was expected to spend no more than 30 minutes on site. But by the time he'd waited the required 15 minutes after pulling the main fuse, then spent 15 minutes trying to get through to his office, then trying some othr stuff, then finally connecting things back up he was on site over an hour.

So after now two occasions when I've had to wait in all day and nothing was achieved, we're back where we've been since mid October, needing someone to replace the meter and nobody can tell us when they might have an other attempt. And no reason for any confidence that the guy will be properly briefed and with sufficient time to actually do it, or that it won’t be canned again.

bristolleedsfan

Sounds like you will be Quids in, if compensation not added automatically wait 11 working days from breach occurring before contacting Octopus about the compensation.

https://octopus.energy/policies/guaranteed-standards-performance/

Qyburn

bristolleedsfan said:

Sounds like you will be Quids in, if compensation not added automatically wait 11 working days from breach occurring before contacting Octopus about the compensation.

https://octopus.energy/policies/guaranteed-standards-performance/

They've already credited £40 for the missed appointment yesterday. I would have thought they should have done the same for the January visit since it wasn't properly planned.

But really it's not about compensation, it's about getting the meter fixed so I can go back onto a smart tariff. We would have been financially better off if I could have changed to an off peak tariff over Winter, and now we're nearing the end I'd like be able to switch to Intelligent Flux as soon as we're generating more than we use.

Qyburn

Qyburn said:

They've already credited £40 for the missed appointment yesterday. I would have thought they should have done the same for the January visit since it wasn't properly planned.

It seems the Ombudsman agrees and counts the abortive first visit as a service failure. 
 
"This is a service failure and especially as metering appointments in your area seem to be few and far between. Regulation 3.9 states that the energy supplier must ensure that whoever represents it for that purpose possesses the necessary skills, experience and resources to fulfil the purpose of the appointment as the supplier reasonably understands it."

TroubledTarts

I just don't think you have been forceful enough With your complaint and it could have been with the ombudsman by the end of Jan at the very latest.

As a landlord we have advised all our tenants to get on to their energy supplier to get smart meters as they are all economy 7 and a couple are economy 10. Whether or not they have I can see lots hammering their supplier for a smart meter with all the RTS news in the media.

The only way to get yourself top of the list is to be forceful but polite imo.

Qyburn

TroubledTarts said:

I just don't think you have been forceful enough With your complaint and it could have been with the ombudsman by the end of Jan at the very latest.

I could only really have raised it 11 days earlier. Eight weeks was 16th January 2025, but I decided to hold off until the appointment, and raised with the Ombudsman on 27th January.

MarzipanCrumble

Is your meter connecting via O2?  If so - what is the signal like?

Qyburn

We're in Scotland. Laughably one of the Octopus agents speculated that the issue may be due to "poor 4G signal". The meter was working fine for 18 months before going flakey over last Summer.